It didn’t mean anything and there is no need to give him a reason to think that it did, she thought.
Once the movie ended, A.J. pulled out his art book and showed Serena the snakes he’d drawn at camp.
“Wow,” she said as she looked at the drawings. “That’s very realistic. Were you scared when you looked at the snakes? I know I would be.”
“Nope,” A.J. said proudly. “I even touched a python.”
“I never would’ve done that,” Serena exclaimed. “Do you like snakes?”
“Only the ones that won’t bite me,” he replied with a smile.
Serena nodded. She’d known her share of snakes and if she could, she’d chop the head off the biggest one.
Antonio walked over to A.J. and Serena with two dishes of chocolate ice cream. “All right, after dessert, you need to take your bath,” Antonio told his son after handing him his ice cream.
“Yes, sir,” the little boy replied before digging into his ice cream.
Serena took her dish and asked, “Where’s yours?”
“You’re going to eat all of that?” he asked, nodding toward the overflowing dish.
“Chocolate ice cream is my favorite,” she said. “I’m not sharing.”
Antonio pulled a second spoon out of his shorts pocket and dug into the dish. “That’s fine,” he said as he took a huge scoop. “I don’t play fair.”
Serena and A.J. giggled as melted ice cream dripped onto Antonio’s shirt. “See what happens when you steal,” she said as she wiped the spot away.
The trio ate their ice cream and laughed for another hour before Serena took the empty dishes into the kitchen while Antonio took A.J. upstairs to give him a bath.
A.J. hopped out of the tub, dripping water onto the floor as Antonio grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his son.
“Are you and Miss Serena going to have another sleepover?” he asked his father.
“Maybe,” Antonio said. “Are you all right with that?”
“I like her. Do you like her too?”
“I do,” Antonio said. “She’s a really nice person.”
A.J. nodded as he dried his head. “She’s not a derelict,” the little boy said.
Antonio laughed tersely. “No, she isn’t.”
“But she’s your girlfriend, right?”
“All right, son. It’s time for bed,” Antonio said. “And yes, she is my girlfriend.”
“I have a girlfriend too,” A.J. said. “She thought I was brave because I touched the snake, but I was really scared.”
Antonio laughed, thinking of all the silly things he’d done to impress a girl at that age. “Well, you’d better be careful trying to impress her. She’s going to expect you to keep doing it.”
“I’m really not scared of the snakes anymore,” A.J. said. “I’m a big boy now.”
“Well it’s time for this big boy to go to bed.” The two bounded down the hall to A.J.’s room. Antonio watched his son as he put on his pajamas and smiled. He was happy Serena and A.J. got along so well. He’d wondered for a while after Marian’s death how dating would affect his son. What if he’d make a mistake in choosing the wrong woman? What if the woman didn’t mesh with his son? He was so lucky those problems didn’t exist with Serena. A.J. was comfortable around her and she hadn’t tried to be his mother nor tried to tell Antonio how to raise his son.
“Daddy,” A.J. said, breaking into Antonio’s thoughts.
“Yes, son?”
“I said I’m a big boy. I don’t need a nightlight.”
Antonio walked over to A.J.’s bed and tucked him in. Kissing him on the forehead, he said, “Good night, Champ.” He flipped the lamp off as A.J. closed his eyes. Then he stepped out of the room and counted to ten silently. Just as he suspected, the lamp popped back on. Antonio didn’t mind because he didn’t want A.J. growing up too fast anyway.
When Antonio got downstairs, he was surprised to find Serena in the kitchen drying their dishes. “You didn’t have to do this,” he said from the doorway. Serena turned around and flashed him a bright smile.
“I know, but I wanted to.” She dried her hands on a dish towel and crossed over to Antonio. “Besides, it’s the least I could do. Thank you for making tonight special and simple.”
He wrapped his arms around her waist. “I’m going to have to properly thank you for your dishwashing.”
Serena placed her hand on his chest and stroked him back and forth. “How are you going to thank me?”
Antonio lifted her onto the edge of the counter. “I’m going to start with this,” he said, then captured her lips in a soft, searing kiss. Glad that she’d cleared off the bar, he leaned her back as he kissed her deeper and slipped his hand underneath her shirt, touching her silky skin and filling with desire.
She moaned as Antonio kissed each inch of flesh he exposed as he lifted her shirt. His tongue danced across her flat belly, spending time around her navel causing her legs to quake with anticipation.
“Antonio,” she intoned as he unsnapped the button on her pants.
He pulled them down and slipped his hand inside the barely-there lace thong that covered her mound of sexuality. Antonio stroked her and parted her wet folds of flesh with his finger seeking out her bud. When he found it, he stroked it slowly, making a circular motion with his finger.
Serena became wet like a flowing river. She gasped and moaned at the same time as his lips and tongue replaced his finger. Shifting her hips, she pressed her body into his mouth as he licked and sucked until she called out his name in a husky whisper.
He pulled back from her, his face glazed with her desire. “Let’s take this outback.” Lifting her off the counter he headed outside to the enclosed porch. Antonio laid Serena on the plush sofa and peeled the rest of her clothes off. Slowly, he licked and sucked her erect nipples while caressing her inner thighs, making her shiver with desire and anticipation. He moved slowly, tasting every inch of her. She was the one thing he couldn’t resist. She was sweeter than honey, more addictive than chocolate. Antonio’s desire grew as he inched down her body. As much as he wanted to dive into her wetness, he pulled back. “Protection,” he said, then dashed inside.
While he was gone, Serena checked the back door to make sure it was locked. The last thing she wanted was to be interrupted by Antonio’s psychotic sister-in-law. After checking the door, she returned to the chair and laid back just as Antonio walked out on the porch, his erection shielded by a condom.
He looked at Serena as she struck a sensual pose. “Damn,” he exclaimed as he closed the space between them and pulled her against his chest.
Serena kissed him with a hot passion that took his breath away. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he lowered himself on top of her, moaning as he entered her wetness. They ground against each other slowly, their moans piercing the air as they gave each other pleasure beyond words. Antonio kneaded her breasts as she pumped her hips into his. Serena arched her back, allowing him to go deeper inside her. She reveled in every throbbing inch of him as he rolled his hips, touching every sensitive spot inside her valley.
Antonio intoned her name as Serena tightened her thighs around him and gripped his penis tightly. “You feel so good,” he moaned, coming closer to his climax.
Serena was in the middle of her second orgasm as he brought his lips down on top of her nipples. “Antonio,” she called out as her body shuttered with pleasure.
“Serena.”
Moments later, they came together and fell into a sweaty embrace, their hearts beating in sync as they lay back on the sofa. She stroked his chest and smiled as he wrapped his arms around her.
Safe. She felt safe and comforted in his embrace. Am I in love with this man? she thought as she ran her index finger down his bicep.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“I’m great,” she replied.
“Yes, you are,” he said, then kissed her chin. “I’m glad you came over tonight. I’m even happier that you
’re a part of my life.”
“Not as happy as I am,” she said. “I never thought I’d feel this way. Never thought I’d find someone I could really be myself with and be so comfortable with.” Or love, she added silently as she stared into his eyes.
“I’m glad we’re sharing this together,” he said. “You’re the kind of woman I never thought would want anything to do with me and here we are. I can’t get enough of you and I don’t ever want to think about what my life would be like without you in it.”
“Lucky for you, you’re not going to have to find out,” she said, then captured his lips in a searing kiss that instantly aroused him again. When they broke the kiss, Antonio stood and scooped Serena up in his arms.
“Let’s go inside,” he said. “I want to make love to you until the sun comes up.”
As she wrapped her arms around his neck, Serena knew that she’d fallen in love again. But this time, she knew it was real.
Chapter 23
Emerson awoke with a start when he felt the faint brush of fingers against his bicep. Looking down at Casey’s sleeping face, he groaned inwardly. Serena had been all he thought about last night when he drunkenly stumbled into his hotel room with his arms wrapped around Casey. Kissing her had been like kissing an ice cube. She had none of Serena’s fire, none of her passion and when he’d gotten her into bed, Casey had been a boring and uninspired lover. To get satisfaction he’d closed his eyes and pretended he had been diving into Serena’s wetness.
Casey had pushed him back. “That hurts,” she’d cried out.
When Emerson had opened his eyes and saw he was buried inside Casey and not Serena, his erection shrank. He had hopped out of bed, mumbling an apology to Casey. Then he’d gone into the bathroom and splashed water on his face. When he’d returned to the bed, Casey had been asleep and Emerson was grateful.
Why did I bring her up here? he thought as he glanced at Casey as she yawned and stretched her arms above her head.
“Morning,” she said.
“Morning,” he replied.
Casey propped up on her elbows and looked at Emerson. “So, last night obviously wasn’t about me.”
“We were drunk. I’m sorry if I hurt you.”
“Were you thinking about her?”
“Let’s not get into this. We both want Serena and Antonio to split up. What we did was a mistake.”
Casey rolled her eyes and hopped out of the bed. “You’re right. A mistake and not a good experience.”
Emerson laid back and looked at her. “Let’s be honest here. Last night wasn’t about either one of us. You wanted me to be your brother-in-law as much as I wanted you to be Serena. So, there is no need to take this personally.”
Casey pulled on her clothes and looked down at Emerson. “You’re right. No one can ever know about this.”
“It’s already forgotten,” he said.
Casey grabbed her purse and slammed out of the room.
Emerson was tempted to call Serena. He longed to hear the sound of her voice and hoped he could convince her not to fight him on the movie. She still wanted to be a star and he was determined to make her one.
Antonio quietly crept out of bed, careful not to wake Serena. She needed to rest. He knew the fight with Emerson Bradford was taking a lot out of her. Heading down the hall, he saw that A.J. was still asleep as well. Walking into his son’s room, he roused the little boy. “Hey, man, time to get ready for camp.”
A.J. yawned and sat up. “All right.”
Antonio touched his forehead. “Are you feeling all right?”
A.J. shook his head. “I really couldn’t sleep last night.”
“Why not?”
He shrugged his shoulders and dropped his head. Antonio lifted his son’s head. “What’s wrong, son?”
“Well, when I used to go to sleep, sometimes I would dream of Mommy, but I didn’t last night and I think it’s because I like Serena. Aunt Casey said that I was going to let her replace Mommy in my heart.”
Seething, Antonio forced a smile. “Your mother will never be replaced in your heart. When your aunt says those things, she is speaking from her own hurt and pain. We’re all still kind of sad that Mommy had to go to heaven.”
“But I don’t want to forget Mommy like Aunt Casey said I would,” A.J. said.
“That won’t happen. I won’t let you forget your mom.” Antonio drew his son into his arms and hugged him tightly. “I’ll talk to your aunt. She shouldn’t be telling you those things.”
“Okay,” A.J. said, his voice sounding lighter as he headed toward his closet to get dressed.
Antonio watched his son, wondering why Casey kept saying things to A.J. to upset him. That was going to stop. She needed to mind her own business and quit making A.J. feel bad about liking Antonio’s girlfriend.
Moments later, A.J. was dressed. He and Antonio were heading downstairs to grab a quick breakfast of Pop Tarts and milk. As they headed for the door to leave, Antonio heard a car door close. When he opened the door, Casey was standing on the porch.
“What are you doing here?” he asked when he saw her.
“Good morning,” Casey said as she looked at A.J.
Antonio turned to his son and told him to get in the truck. “Casey, you need to leave. I’m sick of you trying to poison my son,” he snapped.
“I’m trying to protect my nephew since you seem to be putting your libido first these days,” Casey said. “But have you thought about what you’re teaching him?”
“I told you not to question how I raise my son. And stop telling him that he’s going to forget his mother. Do you even care what your venom is doing to A.J.?”
“I know you’re having fun with Serena and you’re excited because you have someone in your bed now. But have you considered that she is sharing more than one bed?”
Antonio sidestepped her and snapped, “That’s what your sister did.” As he got into the truck, he forced a smile for his son and started the truck without saying a word about Casey.
After dropping A.J. off at Discovery Place, Antonio headed back home and was happy to see that Casey was gone. He was getting really tired of her drama. Despite the fact that he was allowing her to be a part of A.J.’s life out of respect for Marian’s memory, if she didn’t change her ways, he was going to put his foot down and she wouldn’t see his son again.
“Serena,” he called out as he headed upstairs to his bedroom.
“I’m in the bathroom,” she replied.
Antonio opened the door and found Serena laying in the garden tub. Bubbles covered most of her body and a wide smile spread across her face as Antonio took his clothes off to join her. “Is this how you start your day?” he asked as he eased into the bathtub. The warm water seemed to get hotter as Serena stroked his thigh.
“I wish I could say it was, but your tub is so big, I wondered just how clean we could get in it,” she said.
Antonio brought his lips on top of hers and kissed her gently at first, but when she flicked her tongue across his lips, his desire rose like the sun in the morning sky. She wrapped her leg around his waist and pulled him against her as their kiss deepened. He ached to be inside her, but he knew they had to be protected. Serena placed her hand on his chest and pushed him backward. When he was against the wall of the tub, she planted herself on his lap and took the soap and rubbed it across his chest, circling his nipples and sending shivers of desire up and down his spine. Then she rinsed the soap off and kissed his erect nipples while stroking his growing erection. She inched up his body, licking his neck slowly and making him cry out.
“I need to be inside you,” he moaned.
“I need you inside me,” she called out.
Antonio lifted Serena up as he rose slowly from the tub. It didn’t matter that they were soaking wet as he led her to his bedroom and laid her across the bed. He retrieved a condom and placed it on the pillow as he stroked her damp skin. His fingers danced across her nipples as Serena writhed underneath his
touch. Soon, Antonio replaced his fingers with his tongue as he sucked and licked her nipples until she released a guttural moan that let him know she was beyond ready to feel him. He slipped his hand between her thighs and stroked her until her knees quaked. Slipping his finger between the wet folds of her flesh, he sought out her throbbing bud.
“Please,” Serena cried. “Need. You.”
“Just let me do one thing first,” he said as he spread her thighs apart and planted his face in her wet valley. Antonio licked and sucked her most sensitive parts until her desire poured on him. As hard as he was, her heat, sweetness, and wetness made him even harder. With his free hand, he reached for the condom, ripped it open and rolled it into place. Serena wrapped her legs around his waist as he lowered himself on top of her and kissed her with an urgent need. Pressing her hips into his, Antonio dove into her valley. She moaned as she ground against him. Pleasurable sensations rushed through her body as he pumped his hips in and out.
Antonio and Serena became one, their hearts pounding in sync as they rocked and rolled across the bed. When they reached their climax, Antonio thought he felt the earth pause while he released himself. Serena clung to him, shivering with pleasure. He turned on his side and held her tightly.
She kissed his cheek. “Maybe we need to start the day like this more often.”
“Yes,” he said, then glanced at the clock. “Although, half the morning is over.”
“That just means nighttime is right around the corner,” she replied with a grin. “You know, I don’t know what I would do without you.”
Antonio stared into her eyes and smiled. “Luckily for you, you won’t have to find out.”
Serena reached up and stroked his cheek. “Being in your arms makes me feel safe and I feel as if what we have is real.”
“That’s because it is,” he said, then kissed her softly. “Being with you is easy and I’m glad you gave us a chance.”
“I gave us a chance?” she asked as she propped up on her elbow and looked down at him. “I do believe I chased you for a year.”
“You did, but I’m talking about a chance to be something real. Something more than what we have between the sheets. I’m glad you let me in to get to know the real you. Every tantalizing inch,” he said as he stroked her hip.
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